SCISSION provides progressive news and analysis from the breaking point of Capital.
SCISSION represents an autonomist Marxist viewpoint.
The struggle against white skin privilege and white supremacy is key.
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"You cannot carry out fundamental change without a certain amount of madness. In this case, it comes from nonconformity, the courage to turn your back on the old formulas, the courage to invent the future.”
FIGHT WHITE SUPREMACY, SAVE THE EARTH

UPPING THE STAKES

Calling All Fanatics

Protecting nature should be more important than enjoying it

BY DERRICK JENSEN

I’VE ALWAYS kind of hated that quote by Edward Abbey about being a half-hearted fanatic (“Be as I am—a reluctant enthusiast . . . a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic”). Not so much because of the racism and misogyny that characterized some of his work. And not even because of the quote itself. But rather because of how that quote has been too often misused by people who put too much emphasis on the half-hearted, and not nearly enough emphasis on the fanatic.

The fundamental truth of our time is that this culture is killing the planet. We can quibble all we want—and quibble too many do—about whether it is killing the planet or merely causing one of the six or seven greatest mass extinctions in the past several billion years, but no reasonable person can argue that industrial civilization is not grievously injuring life on Earth.

Given that fact, you’d think most people would be doing everything they can to protect life on this planet—the only life, to our knowledge, in the universe. Sadly, you’d be wrong.

I think often of a line by the psychiatrist R. D. Laing, “Few books today are forgivable.” He wrote this, I believe, because we have become so very alienated from our own experience, from who we are, and this alienation is so destructive to others and to ourselves that if a book does not take this alienation as its starting point and work toward rectifying it, we’d all be better off looking at blank pieces of paper. Or better, actually experiencing something (or someone). Or even better, entering, as Martin Buber might have written, into a relationship with something or someone.

I agree with Laing that few books today are forgivable (and the same is true for films, paintings, songs, relationships, lives, and so on), and I agree for the reasons I believe he was giving. But there’s another reason I think few books (films, paintings, songs, relationships, lives, and so on) are forgivable. There’s that little nagging fact that this culture is murdering the planet. Any book (film, painting, song, relationship, life, and so on) that doesn’t begin with this basic understanding—that the culture is murdering the planet (in part because of this alienation; and of course this murder then in turn fuels further alienation)—and doesn’t work toward rectifying it is not forgivable, for an infinitude of reasons, one of which is that without a living planet there can be no books. There can be no paintings, songs, relationships, lives, and so on. There can be nothing.

The conservation biologist Reed Noss has called his field a “combat discipline”: we are in a crisis, and our attitudes and actions need to reflect this. And so I sometimes try to apply the Ed Abbey quote to the work of a firefighter. If you were trapped in a burning building, would you want the firefighters to be reluctant enthusiasts, part-time crusaders, half-hearted fanatics? Should the mother of a very sick child be reluctant or half-hearted in defense of that child?

I’m not saying we don’t need recreation. I’m not saying we don’t need amusement. Hell, I have three mystery novels in my backpack right now. I’m not saying a firefighter doesn’t need to rest—having hauled seven unconscious people out of the burning building, we could hardly blame the firefighter for grabbing a quick drink of water or sometimes taking a day off; and I’m not saying the mother doesn’t need to sleep or take some time away from the stress of caring and advocating for her child. We all need the occasional escape, or even indulgence. But we must be able to pursue those escapes and indulgences with the knowledge that others are rushing into the burning building, that others have taken over the job of advocating for whatever is necessary to heal that child.

And that, frankly, is part of the problem: there aren’t nearly enough of us working anywhere near hard enough to stop this culture from killing the planet. Obviously, or the world would be getting healthier, instead of being desecrated with ever increasing speed. If there were more of us trying to stop this culture from killing the planet, then those who are working themselves to death could afford to take a little time off and not feel as if things would fall apart while they climbed the mountains or ran the rivers.

“It is not enough to fight for the land,” Abbey continued; “it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it is still there.” But this part of the quote might actually bother me more, in part because of its fatalism and in part because we—humans—are not the point. Yes, absolutely we should enjoy and commune with and make love with and touch and be with and absorb and be absorbed by the land. Yes, absolutely we should sit in the sun and feel it warm our bones, and we should listen to the whispering voices of trees, and we should open our ears and our hearts to the voices of frogs. But when the forests are being flattened and the frogs are being extirpated, enjoying them isn’t enough. So long as there’s still something we can do to protect them, shouldn’t protecting them be far more important than enjoying them? Because, once again, we are not the point. The trees, the frogs, do not exist for us. It is our culture that is killing them, and it is up to us to stop it.

Have you ever had anyone you love die or come to grievous harm needlessly, from some unnecessary act of stupidity or violence? I have. And in the aftermath I have never wished I had spent more time enjoying this other, but rather wishing I had acted differently such that I was able to prevent the unnecessary losses.

As my artist and writer friend Stephanie McMillan wrote in her essay “Artists: Raise Your Weapons”: “If we lived in a time of peace and harmony, then creating escapist, serotonin-boosting hits of mild amusement wouldn’t be a crime. If all was well, such art might enhance our happy existence. There’s nothing wrong with pleasure or decorative art. But in times like these, for an artist not to devote her/his talents and energies to creating cultural weapons of resistance is a betrayal of the worst magnitude, a gesture of contempt against life itself. It is unforgivable.”

I would extend her comments beyond art: in times like these, for anyone not to devote her/his talents and energies to defending the planet is a betrayal of the worst magnitude, a gesture of contempt against life itself. It is unforgivable.

The questions I keep coming back to are these: in this time, as countless multitudes of humans and nonhumans suffer for the profits and luxuries of a few, and as species go extinct at rates greater than any in the last scores of millions of years—as large-vertebrate evolution itself is being halted—what does the world need? What does the world need from me?

I want to be very clear: I don’t mean to imply that we shouldn’t love the world or each other (human or nonhuman). Or that we shouldn’t play games or have fun. I’m not saying we shouldn’t rest or go hiking or read good books (andDesert Solitaire is a great book). I’m not even saying I have a problem with Abbey’s quote as such; my main problem with the quote is the many would-be activists who use it as an excuse for inaction.

We are in a crisis, and we need to act as such. We need to rescue people from the burning building. We need everybody’s help.

Not that it comes as a great shock or anything, but Carrie Feldman has been served with a subpoena by the Feds who want her to testify against her close friend Scott DeMuth at his upcoming trial.

You all remember that Carrie spent several months in jail this winter for refusing to cooperate with the grand jury that ended up indicting Scott.

Scott is scheduled to go on trial on September 13th. Scott is charged with conspiracy for the ALF raid at the University in Iowa in 2004, Lakeside Ferrets in Minnesota, "and other animal enterprises elsewhere" with "persons known and unknown to the Grand Jury.

On Nov. 14, 2004, four masked individuals broke into Spence Labs and Seashore Hall and caused around $450,000 in damage. The Animal Liberation Front — classified a terrorist organization by the USA — claimed responsibility for the break-in.

Other recent activities by the forces of democracy who hate puppies include:

New AETA 4 DNA warrant

This week, Joseph Buddenberg of the AETA 4 was the target of a warrant for his DNA. A quote from the agent who authored the affidavit:

"I believe probable cause exists that Buddenberg was involved in the February 24, 2008 altercation at the L.H./J.R. residence in Santa Cruz.... The samples from the bullhorn found in Khajavi's vehicle will yield evidence that Buddenberg was involved in force, violence, and threats involving animal enterprises, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 43 & 371"

Buddenberg submitted himself to FBI agents this week, who took four swabs of DNA.

While the AETA 4 indictment was recently thrown out, this recent government offensive indicates the case is not yet over. The case , if continued, stands to be a precedent-setting Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act case with implications for all activists.

Rod Coronado sent back to prison

Rod Coronado has been sentenced to four months in prison for a probation violation. A judge found him guilty of adding well-known Earth First! co-founder Mike Rosselle as a friend on Facebook, which the judge found violated his probation conditions. The conditions bar Coronado from associating with anyone involved with Earth First. He was also found to have used a computer which was not approved by the probation department.

Several other people report being contacted by the Feds in regards to the on going "investigation" of animal rights activism.

If you have been conctacted by he FBI, call the National Lawyers Guild Green Scare Hotline at: 1-888-NLG-ECOL.

A relatively uneventful day in court on Monday for Scott DeMuth was followed by
an unexpected subpoena for former grand jury resister Carrie Feldman.
During pre-trial hearings for Scott held at the federal courthouse, lawyers
discussed pending motions in need of resolution before trial. There were no
oral arguments or decisions by the court. There will be a suppression hearing
before the trial to determine whether evidence seized in a raid on Scott's
house prior to the 2008 Republican National Convention can be legally used at
the trial. This hearing is scheduled for the morning of Monday, September 13.
Prosecutor Cliff Cronk has indicated that he will appeal the decision of the
courts if they suppress that evidence, likely postponing the trial until that
issue is resolved. For the time being, though, trial is scheduled to begin on
Tuesday, September 14 at 9 am.
Cronk also indicated that he intends to call up to sixty witnesses at trial.
Many of these witnesses could be cut if the defense is willing to stipulate to
various facts of the case. Cronk also said that he expects the trial to take
around three weeks, three times as long as we had been expecting.
Cronk was ordered to file a list of expert witnesses by Wednesday and to
respond to a motion in which the defense argues that he should be barred from
talking about a number of things at the trial, including other ALF actions,
Scott's associations with the RNC Welcoming Committee, and the use of the words
"terrorism" or "terrorist" to describe the actions Scott is being charged with.
Later that evening, the Conspiracy Tour had an event in nearby Rock Island,
Illinois. Two federal agents waited outside the event in plain clothes until
Carrie walked outside to get something from the tour van. When she did, they
handed her a subpoena to testify at the trial. A scanned copy of the subpoena
will be available on http://davenportgrandjury.wordpress.com shortly.
In the weeks before trial, we will be finalizing our support plans for Scott
and Carrie, so stay tuned for more information. And we're inviting all of you
to join us in court if you're able. To find out how to help with support work
in Davenport, email us at scottandcarrie(A)riseup.net. Even if you can't come
to the trial, you can help spread the word and help us raise legal defense
funds in your own community.

So why is it we aren't hearing more about Pastor Bill Keller's 9/11 Church at Ground Zero. I mean the Pastor is only a known homophobe, Muslim hater and all around bigot. I mean he'll be preaching hate two blocks from the famous ground zero and seems like that's a-ok with all those folks worried about the sensitivities of those connected to the sacred ground. How come?

Pastor Bill Keller of Florida says he will begin preaching Sunday at theMarriottat 85 West Street (see proximity to ground zerohere). A weekly service is planned at the hotel until the $8 million 9/11 Christian Center finds a permanent space.At the Marriott?

Hello Marriott, what the hell are you doing? Hello, forget sacred ground, you rent space to hate mongers. Isn't that nice to know.

I hate to send you there, but you really need to check out the website of Christian preacher and his flock. If you have the stomach, click here.

If those who attacked the Twin Towers supposedly represent all Islam, the Pastor Bill represents all Christianity.

A bigoted pastor who has assailed gays and Muslims is launching the "9-11 Christian Center at Ground Zero" a mere two blocks from the World Trade Center site this Sunday, but so far the project hasn't drawn a peep of protest from those who are outraged by the "ground zero mosque."

Pastor Bill Keller of Florida said today he will begin preaching Sunday at the Marriott at 85 West Street (see proximity to ground zero here). A weekly service is planned at the hotel until the $8 million 9/11 Christian Center finds a permanent space. (Fundraising is going well, Keller told Salon today.)

To get a sense of where Keller is coming from, consider his project's website, which calls Islam a religion of "hate and death" whose adherents will go to hell. It also says: "Islam is a wonderful religion... for PEDOPHILES!"

Keller is the same pastor who hosted a birther infomercial that encouraged viewers to send him and a partner donations to advance the birther cause. His Internet ministry explicitlycalls President Obama the new Hitler. He calls homosexuality a perversion. And in 2008, he targeted presidential contender Mitt Romney for being Mormon with a campaign called "voting for Satan."

In short, if critics of the Park51 Islamic community center, which is explicitly welcoming of all faiths, truly believe that there is a "zone of solemnity" around ground zero (as Gov. Pat Quinn put it), they should be horrified at Keller's 9/11 Christian Center.

Ditto for those who believe that religious leaders should not build "deliberately provocative" projects around ground zero, as another mosque opponent put it.

(An enterprising reporter could no doubt find some Sept. 11 families who are offended by Keller's project, just as an enterprising reporter did in the beginning of the Park51 controversy.)

And if there was ever a case of insensitivity to Sept. 11 -- another frequent argument of the anti-mosque crowd -- consider the fact that Keller has a history of seeking to profit from his various projects (one, called Gold for Souls, involved telling people to simply mail him their gold and jewelry). The 9-11 Christian Center appears to be no different. The project'swebsite features a prominent link telling viewers to "Earn $$$ - Click Here!" It goes to aletter from Keller offering people a 10 percent referral cut on donations from their friends to the 9/11 Christian Center.

To be perfectly clear, Keller should be permitted to build anything he wants as long as it's legal.

But the only logic by which Keller's project would not be horrifying to those who oppose Park51 is if they believe all Muslims, including the progressive Muslim Americans behind Park51, should be treated as suspicious or even in the same category as the Sept. 11 terrorists. If mosque opponents' concerns are truly about sensitivity to the neighborhood around ground zero -- and not about Muslims -- we'll hear them denounce Keller loudly in the coming days.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Now, it really may be time to boycott french fries...if they come from France that is.France, in the midst of a nazi like deportation project aimed at the Roma people and other travelers has called for a summit to occur in Paris next week to deal with the "issue of immigration." Gee, what could they have in mind. Did I mention that the countries NOT invited are Romania and Bulgaria, which happen to be the countries to which France is expelling the Roma.Did I mention that today France said it will step up deportations of "foreigners caught stealing or begging aggressively." Hmmm, I wonder what they're thinking.

What they're thinking was made perfectly clear at a press conference today where interior minister Brice Hortefeux and immigration minister Eric Besson said they had no intention of rowing back on the policy, which has provoked concern from the UN, the EU and many leading figures of French society.

"The evacuation and demolition operations of illegal and illicit camps will continue because they are legitimate and necessary," said Hortefeux, adding that 128 squats had been broken up and almost 1,000 people had been sent back to their country of origin – most of them "voluntarily" – since the end of July.

In response to all this racist crap, a coalition of Roma groups has called for a European boycott ofFrench products and services to protest against the clampdown to begin September 6 (the same date the above mentioned Summit opens). Hey, why leave it to the Europeans. Not that I'm a big fan of boycotts accomplishing much, but what the hey, let's all join in!

By the way there are signs of cracks in the French government. The Guardian reported today, ".. the foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, admitted he had considered resigning over the matter, saying he agreed with the basics of the policy, but was not happy with aspects of its execution.

"And, over the weekend, defense minister Hervé Morin irritated Sarkozy by reading a text message sent to him by a friend of North African origin. "'We, French of North African descent, are very proud to officially hand over to Roma the role of the scapegoat responsible for all of France's ills ... Good luck to them!'" said Morin, who is part of the Nouveau Centre party, not the president's Union for a Popular Movement."

A federation of Romanian Roma civic organisations called Monday for a Europe-wide boycott of French products and services to protest against the French government clampdown on this minority.

"We call for a Europe-wide boycott of French products and services starting from September 6," Roma Civic Alliance President David Mark told AFP.

The Roma Civic Alliance is a federation of 21 Romanian NGOs involved in improving the life of Roma and Gypsy populations in this European country.

The NGOs also called on "Roma brothers and sisters, friends of all ethnic groups, all those committed to the principles of equality" to join protests in front of French embassies on the same day.

The boycott call has been sent to major Roma organisations in Europe "in order to make the French rulers more aware of the fact that fundamental rights are not subject to negotiation", the Alliance added.

"We know that the purchasing power of Roma is usually limited but nevertheless we think that this action is useful," Mark said.

Romania counts between 530,000 and 2.5 million Roma out of a total population of 21.5 million inhabitants.

France is Romania's fourth-largest commercial partner.

The boycott will "cease when the French authorities cease mass expulsions and stop criminalising an entire ethnic group," Mark added.

"We chose September 6 because the French government will organise a summit in Paris to discuss the Roma issue but the authorities only invited a few European countries", he stressed.

France has invited the interior ministers of Germany, Spain, Greece, Italy, Great-Britain as well as the Belgian EU presidency for a meeting on "asylum and illegal immigration" in Paris on September 6.

The Italian Interior minister Roberto Maroni said the issue of Roma will be discussed.

"Roma issues should be discussed in regular European meetings and not in a summit where only a handful were invited, leaving aside eastern European countries" host to large communities of Roma, Mark insisted.